Author(s): Paul McIlhenny, Barbara Hunter
Publisher: Gramercy
Publication Date: 2004-05-04
Pages: 144
Review: I recently went on a no husband’s allowed Thelma & Louise type driving trip with my friend Sophie. We started up north in Washington State, worked our way down to Long Beach in Southern California and then east, ending up in New Orleans. Along the way I visited countless thrift shops, Salvation Army and Goodwills galore and a bouillabaisse pot full of independents. I found cookbooks a plenty, so many good ones to try out and write about, but this one I bought new in the Quarter. How can a lover of cookbooks not snap up THE TABASCO BRAND COOKBOOK when she’s in New Orleans.
This little book opens with brief history of Tabasco Sauce, just as you’d expect, then it goes into some very interesting, to say the least, recipes. Though normally not a fan of food processor’s I have one and one is called for if you want to properly make the Roasted Red Pepper Dip on page 15. It is deliciously good and his a bit of a kick. The Scallops in Double Pepper Sauce on page 62 are to die for as is the Spirited Squash on page 104, it’s a whole `nother way to enjoy butternut squash.
If you’re looking for a bit of spice in your meals, give this book a try. It’s not very expensive and it’ll liven up your dinner, that’s for sure.
Review submitted by Captain Katie OsborneTabasco® is the quintessentially American sauce. Simple, straightforward, unaffected by the elements, it stands proud on tables from Boston to Los Angeles. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner will find someone reaching for the special pepper sauce from Avery Island, Louisiana. It is only fitting that the McIlhenny family committed to writing their favorite recipes highlighting their family’s ubiquitous condiment. The Tabasco® Brand Cookbook is compact and entertaining. A touch of history, a dash of anecdote, and many signature Cajun and Creole recipes makes this an essential and amusing addition to your cookbook library.
As one would expect from a sauce that is at home on scrambled eggs or in clam chowder, the many and varied uses for Tabasco are explored in this book. While its uses are diverse, it is more than a way to add some “zip” in a dish. Its unique recipe produces a unique flavor, and though there are many challengers in the hot sauce section of your local grocery store or gourmet shop, there is only one sauce from Avery Island. While the book predates their expanded product line, many of these dishes could use the chipotle infused Tabasco or - if you really want to heat things up - the habañero brand. If you have the sauce, you need to have the cookbook, and if you don’t have either, what are you waiting for?
This is sort of a “guys’” cookbook so far as who will most savor these spicy-hot dishes. But if you’re a guy and your spouse/companion does all the cooking (which is still by far the predominant actuality in America, even though this trend is shifting somewhat) then you need to be aware that most of the recipes herein require some level of culinary experience.
Now, the fact is that many women will love these dishes too, and, many men are quite capable of preparing these recipes — but I did want to particularly mention this culinary skill level issue. These recipes are not especially difficult as recipes go but this is really not a cookbook for those who have yet to develop their basic cooking skills.
As to the book’s content, these are some wonderful recipes. Each is rated as to the intensity of heat, represented by tiny Tabasco bottles… one bottle means mild, two means it’s hotter, and so on, up to a rating of four (Diablo!). This work is more-or-less an official Tabasco publication since Paul McIlhenny is one of the co-authors — Barbara Hunter is a public relations person who likely organized McIlhenny’s thoughts and recipes into a very comprehensible format.
The book also contains a history, mostly of Tabasco [brand] Hot Pepper Sauce and is nicely illustrated with black-and-white photos from the company archives. The dishes themselves are not illustrated but I did not find that this diminished the book in any significant major way.
Here is the table of contents:
1. Introduction
2. Soups & starters
3. Breakfast & brunch
4. Entrées
5. Vegetables and side dishes
6. Condiments and sauces
7. Mail order suppliers [for seafood, venison, etc.]
8. Index
I own the hardcover 1993 edition of this cookbook. It’s 144 pages in length and the book’s dimensions are 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ x 1/2″ and the two-page index is nicely organized. Typical of the recipes you’ll find are “Eggplant New Iberia” (page 19), “Classic Bloody Mary” (page 51), and “Mustard Crusted Leg of lamb” (page 100). In fact a good many of the featured recipes are either Creole or Cajun in their ethnicity.
While not a “general cookbook” by any stretch of the imagination, “The Tabasco Cookbook” is still a great specialty volume which will appeal heavily to those who enjoy cooking and/or eating spicy dishes. Highly recommended.This book made a great gift for my brother for christmas. Unlike some people who have purchased this item, I knew exactly what I was buying. This was a fair price to pay for anyone who collects tabasco gear or just loves the product. The book was full of facts, tips, and recipes to try. It went along perfectly will the rest of my Tabasco brand Christmas theme.This cookbook utilizes Tabasco sauce in all the recipes, but they are not all firey hot. Rather, this cookbook uses Tabasco like a spice or flavoring agent, to add dimension to all kind of recipes.
I highly recommend this to anybody that likes good food and likes their food to have flavor instead of just heat.
Price: $7.99 Buy This Book